Spotlight on Dan Torgersen

By Christie Walker

For 19 years, Dan Torgersen has been the technical director for the OLA, attending 58 OLA Board -meetings throughout the years. As -technical director he has: prepared and distributed -information on issues that face optical labs such as regulatory compliance for OSHA, HIPAA, FDA, and hazardous waste; created materials for labs on processing issues including drill mount and transmittance; and been instrumental in developing the progressive lens identifier. During his 19 year tenure, Dan represented the OLA interests in standardization efforts both domestically (ANSI, ASTM) and -internationally (ISO). He presented technical seminars and papers of importance for ECPs and labs, conceived projects/information that would benefit the -membership, and advised members on litigation issues, being an expert witness in 17 litigations in which an OLA member was the defendant. He accomplished all of this while holding down a full-time job at Walman Optical as the vice-president of information systems and special projects, in Minneapolis, Minn.

Dan is stepping down from his position as technical director for the OLA, leaving some pretty big shoes to fill. The biggest challenge of the job is providing a fast response to questions asked by OLA members. “I receive calls from OLA members asking requirement questions in regards to OSHA, ANSI, or other regulations. Most of their questions could be answered via the documentation for the subject matter, but I think they like picking up the phone and getting a quick answer,” said Torgersen.

During his time as the OLA technical director, Dan has accomplished a lot. He created HIPAA guidelines, transmittance documentation, MSDS compendium, shared statistics for labs, and a number of training modules for surface, finish, and office. Being the OLA’s technical director is not an easy job. “I will not miss the demands placed on me, but I will sorely miss the people I have come to know, professionally and personally,” said Torgersen.

Dan’s advice for the new OLA technical director: “Be ready and available to provide quick response to questions.”